Dancing Through Bullets

Something New

"Am I that bad?" Jericho asked as AJ set up the stereo.

"What do you mean?" AJ scrolled through the music on his phone till he came to the slow, eerie tune that had been stuck in Jericho's head for the past week.

With a laugh, Jericho said, "My own partner left me. I should've let her call me Jerry."

AJ laughed before responding. "Her power still hasn't come back on, so she's taking it as an excuse to sleep in. Besides, even if she did just leave you, I wouldn't take it too personally. V would probably find someone more entertaining to tease. You ready?" AJ stepped up to Jericho and placed his hand on Jericho's shoulder and held out his other arm.

Jericho hesitated with his arms up, and AJ had to grasp one of Jericho's hands in his and place the other on his own waist. "Just pretend I'm Vienna."

No sooner had the words come out than Jericho burst out in laughter. "That's asking a little too much, man."

AJ smirked and nodded for Jericho to start. Used to being the taller partner of the pair, Jericho found it hard to get his rhythm right, and he kept stepping on AJ's feet, which were considerably less delicate than Vienna's in his Vans.

After the third attempt at a fluid routine, AJ motioned for them to stop and wait for the music to end and loop back to the beginning. "Is it because I'm not as pretty as Vienna?" AJ joked, using the front of his shirt to wipe the sweat off his face.

"Maybe it's the lack of pink tights," Jericho joked back, preparing to try the routine again.

AJ put his hand on Jericho's waist so he would be leading instead. "Oh, you like those, huh?" AJ winked and laughed as Jericho's cheeks turned a deep shade of pink.

Jericho reached up to place a hand on AJ's shoulder as the music began its intro again. But when it came to the part where the dance began, neither of them had taken a step, simply staring at each other -- more specifically, each other's eyes.

AJ had both of his hands on Jericho's waist, and Jericho's hands had found their way to the back of AJ's neck. Neither of them seemed uncomfortable or bothered by this change in position.

The music continued playing, but the world had stopped around them as they both leaned closer to each other into a kiss.

Then, as quick as a key change in the song, it was over. Stepping away and over to the radio, AJ cut the music off. "Bet Vienna wouldn't let you do that," he said with his ever-present goofy grin stretching across his face. Blushing furiously, Jericho just shook his head and smiled a little. AJ fiddled with his phone for a moment, and a bouncing blend of percussion poured out of the speakers.

Nodding at Jericho, AJ said, "Let's try something new, shall we?"